So, the French Open rolled around again this year, 2024, and I decided I wanted to really track one player closely. Just kinda follow their journey through the tournament, you know? I picked Madison Keys. Always liked her power game, and I was curious to see how she’d handle the clay this time.
My process wasn’t anything super fancy. First thing, I checked the draw as soon as it came out. Found her first-round match details. Then it was basically about carving out time to watch. Sometimes it was live, other times I had to catch recordings later in the day because, well, life happens.
I got my setup ready – comfy chair, maybe some snacks. I tried not to just passively watch. I really focused on her game. Her forehand, man, when it’s on, it’s really something else. I watched her movement on the clay, which isn’t naturally her best surface, but I thought she looked pretty solid, honestly. Better than I remembered from previous years.
My Little Ritual
For each match, I kinda did the same thing:
- Watched the warm-up, tried to gauge her mood.
- Made mental notes (sometimes actual scribbled notes) during the match. Points won, errors, how she reacted to pressure.
- Paid attention to her serve – speed, placement, second serve reliability.
- Looked at her body language between points. You can tell a lot from that.
- After the match, I’d quickly look up some basic stats online, just to see if the numbers matched what I felt I saw.
I remember one match, I think it was her third round maybe? It got really tight. Lots of back and forth. I was genuinely leaning forward, totally caught up in it. It’s different when you decide to really invest your attention in one player. You feel the ups and downs more intensely.
She made a pretty decent run, getting into the second week which is always respectable at a Slam, especially on clay for her. Watching her later-round match, you could see the level step up. The opponent was just relentless. Keys fought hard, hit some incredible winners, but consistency is key on clay, and she just couldn’t maintain it long enough against that particular opponent.
So, yeah, she didn’t win the whole thing, obviously. But my little project of following her closely? It was pretty rewarding. I felt like I got a better appreciation for the challenges she faces, especially on this surface. It wasn’t just about watching tennis; it was about following a story, her story, through this specific event. Definitely made the French Open more engaging for me this year. Looking forward to seeing her play on the grass now.
